Building Bridges
by SophF95
Summary: Matt Wilding is left in charge of his three younger siblings; Natalie, Joshua and Jack. When he enrolls them at Waterloo Road they are thrown into a new life in Scotland. Will they fit in or will they cause trouble wherever they go? Will Michael be able to get to the bottom of the family's problems or will disaster strike?
1. Chapter 1

_So, I've started a new Waterloo Road story as I feel that I've come to a bit of a dead end with 'Life Goes On' so I'm thinking if I leave it for a bit something will come. Anyways, this is a story about Matt Wilding and his younger siblings Natalie Wilding who is in Year 13, and twins Jack and Joshua Wilding who are in Year 11. I hope you enjoy this first chapter and remember to review!_

**Chapter 1:**

Pulling up in the busy car park Matt looked up at the familiar building, the feeling of excitement that would normally flow through his veins was today replaced with dread. He looked at the burgundy paint, the long strip of doors with the steps leading up to them and felt nothing. It was the last place that he wanted to be but he had no choice. He needed to take his mind off what was happening and this was the only place he could think of coming. Matt let out a sign and sunk back into his seat, his hands still on the steering wheel, the engine still running.

"Are we actually going to get out or are we just going to sit here all day?" A frustrated voice shouted from the back of the car. Matt knew exactly who it was coming from and as he looked in the rear view mirror his eyes locked with one of younger brothers, Jack Wilding. He watched as Jack continued to glare at him until he eventually gave in and rolled his eyes at Matt before turning his glance out of the window. Jack couldn't believe that Matt was making him come here. He didn't want to be at Waterloo Road but Matt claimed that he had no other choice. He looked at all the people in uniforms walking up the steep hill to the school, people laughing and chatting, boys kicking a football around whilst girls ran over to each other to give hugs. However, Jack's attention was pulled back into the car and to his brother when Matt finally started speaking.

"I know today is going to be hard. I don't really want to be here either but..." Matt started when Jack interrupted.

"Well, if you don't want to be here and we don't want to be here, then do you care to explain why on Earth we are here at all then? Why can't we just go?" Jack asked confusingly as he stared at his older brother. He really didn't see why Matt had uprooted them all and brought them here to some rubbish school in the middle of Scotland where they don't know anyone.

"We can't just continue to sit around and do nothing. You two have both got exams and Natalie is doing her A Levels. We can't just put our lives on hold." Matt explained as he looked at his younger siblings, Jack and Joshua both in the back seats, Natalie next to him in the passenger seat.

"Matt's right." Natalie started as she turned to look at Joshua and Jack. "We need to try and carry on as normally as we can. At least by being here it will hopefully take our mind off things for a while." Natalie explained as she looked at her two younger brothers. She watched as Josh let out a weak smile of agreement before turning his gaze back out of the window, his blue eyes watching as people made their way past the car. She then turned to look at Jack who had the same blue eyes and blonde hair. Natalie watched as Jack gave her a look of disgust for agreeing with Matt but decided to carry on listening.

"Right, when we get in we are going to go to Mr Byrne's office so that you can all introduce yourselves and to collect your timetables, ok?" Matt explained before watching all three siblings nod in agreement, Jack more reluctantly than the others.

"Cool, and remember that I'm here for you. All of you." Matt explained as he looked at each sibling individually. "And please try to behave yourselves. I don't want any bad reports." Matt said as he looked at Jack in particular as he had a bad feeling that he was going to get himself into trouble.

"Right, let's go!" Matt said trying to sound enthusiastic as he opened the car door, closing it behind him and collecting his bag out of the boot. He waited until everyone had got out before locking the door and had another look up at the school, took a deep breath, and set off up the steps with Joshua, Jack and Natalie hot on his heels.


	2. Chapter 2

_So, I'm currently in the mood to sit and write this story so thought I would upload this now rather than wait. Thought I would use this chapter to reveal a bit more information about Natalie, Josh and Jack so you can understand their personalities a bit more. Please remember to review what you think!_

**Chapter 2:**

As Michael closed the door to his office he waved his hand to the Wilding family to take a seat at the circular table at the far end of the room. Michael took the final seat at the table and had a quick look round at the three new students in front of him. He could instantly tell that they were all definitely Wildings due to the blonde hair that they all had, just like Matt.

"Well, welcome to Waterloo Road!" Michael said happily as he tucked his chair towards the table and got himself comfy before continuing.

"You must be Natalie?" Michael questioned the young lady sitting to his left. She had long dark blonde hair that fell far down her back and welcoming green eyes that dominated her face.

"Yes I am." Natalie replied back politely as she looked at her new head teacher. She wasn't sure what she was going to make of this place yet but she was certainly willing to give it a go, especially since she only had one year left before she would leave so she wanted to make the most of it before it was too late.

"Nice to meet you. I see that you will be joining our sixth form?" Michael questioned further, Natalie nodding in response. "And I see you will be studying English Literature, French and Music?"

"Yes, I also inherited the musical gene in the family along with Josh." Natalie explained, looking at Josh as she mentioned his name.

"So you're Joshua. Matt has informed me that you're a budding sportsman?" Michael asked as he looked up at Josh. He sensed that he wasn't as confident as his older sister but after a moments silence he turned to Michael.

"I guess so." Josh replied simply. It was true what Mr Byrne had said but he hated talking to new people, especially in front of the rest of his family. He would rather have been in the room alone.

"And that means you must be Jack?" Michael said as he turned to the boy on his right. He observed that Jack was sat back casually in the chair and seemed to be more relaxed than his siblings.

"Yes." Jack replied boldly without looking Mr Byrne in the face.

"I think you will find that it is yes sir." Michael commented as he waited for the appropriate response to come from Jack before continuing.

"I see from your grades that you are doing extremely well in Maths and Science." Michael stated expecting Jack to say something but instead he just sat in silence and continued to stare around teh room.

"Well, it was lovely to meet you all and I hope that you will all be very happy here. Everyone is here to help and support you so please don't be afraid to ask." Michael explained and he watched as Natalie and Joshua nodded and gave a small smile, Jack once again avoiding any kind of eye contact or interest in what had been said. Suddenly, the bell rang to symbolise the start of lessons so Michael explained to the trio to get their timetables from Sonia and to make their way to first lesson.

"Thank you so much for taking them at such short notice Michael. It means a lot." Matt said gratefully as Michael shut the door to his office once again.

"It's no problem. I just wish you would explain to me what is going on." Michael asked as the duo returned to the table they had just been sat at.

"It's just family things. Nothing important." Matt said trying to make it sound like nothing but he knew Michael could see straight through it.

"Come on Matt, you can tell me. It's obviously something if you've uprooted your siblings and brought them all the way up here. Jack seems pretty angry about something." Michael stated as he watched Matt's glaze move to the floor.

"Jack just doesn't want to be here, that's all." Matt said simply before bouncing up out of his seat. "I have a lesson now so I'd better get going. See you later and thanks again!" Matt announced as he hurried over to the door and left before Michael called him back to ask any further questions.


	3. Chapter 3

_Thank you so much for the reviews so far, they really do give me the motivation to update this story. Just a few bits of information before you read this. Harry Wilding is Matt's younger brother. He is 21 and is currently at university. There is a huge back story to the Wilding family that I am going to reveal as the story goes on. I hope you enjoy this chapter and I would like you to help me. Which pupils would you like to see to make friends (or enemies) with Josh, Jack and Natalie? Please leave suggestions when writing your reviews!_

**Chapter 3:**

As the trio stepped outside of the office Josh and Jack headed down the corridor one way towards the English corridor, Natalie going in the opposite direction towards the Science labs. Josh and Jack made their way down the corridor in silence. Josh was used to not talking to his brother anymore but he did find it sad, especially when he thinks back to how the two of them used to be. They used to play together, share clothes and food and even sleep in the same bed when they were younger. Then it all changed. As Josh made his way up the stairs towards English he looked behind him as he noticed that his brother had stopped.

"Jack are you coming or not?" Josh asked as he looked at his brother from the stairs. Jack looked up and simply shook his head, no explanation given. He watched as Josh rolled his eyes and carried on to English without him. He pulled his phone out of his pocket and began going through his contact list until he paused at the number he needed, Aunt Cora. His thumb hovered over the dial button and, after taking a deep breath, he pressed it and lifted the phone to his ear.

"Hi Jack, are you ok?" a friendly voice asked down the phone and Jack knew it was Aunt Cora.

"I guess. This place is a dump though. I can't wait to come back." Jack explained as he thought about his home back in Durham and his school where all his friends are.

"You know I would have took you if I was able to but it wouldn't have been fair. You need to be with your brothers and your sister." the voice down the phone explained and Jack knew it was for the best but it didn't mean that he had to like it.

"How's Mum?" Jack asked and there was a pause before his Aunt replied.

"She's the same as before. No improvement. We've just got to hang in there for her." Aunt Cora explained as Jack let out a sigh. All he wanted was for her to get better so that he could go back home where he belongs.

"Give her my love will you and that I'll be down to see her at the weekend." Jack explained and his Aunt agreed to do as he wished.

"Keep your chin up Jack, give your love to your brothers and sister." Aunt Cora said before hanging up. She knew that Jack would be in school and she didn't want to keep him from his lessons.

"Yeah, sure." Jack said annoyingly as he looked at the blank screen on his phone. He didn't even get to say goodbye. He shoved the phone angrily back in his pocket. It seems that his Aunt doesn't see that anyone has done anything wrong either, only Jack. So much for families sticking together he thought.

Making his way up the stairs to the English corridor he could see the room that he needed to be in. He really didn't want to go but he didn't have anything else to do so he thought it would be better than nothing. Opening the door to the class he was greeted by a man in a white shirt, sleeves rolled up around his elbows and black trousers.

"Ah, you must be Jack. I asked Josh if you were joining us and he didn't know." Mr Clarkson explained as he looked at Jack, then to Josh and wondered how he was going to be able to tell the twins apart.

"Yeah, well, he wouldn't know." Jack said bluntly as he glared over to his twin. Of course, he wouldn't have expected Josh to cover him but he could have at least told the teacher that he was on his way.

"So, do you care to tell me where you've been?" Mr Clarkson asked as he looked at Jack.

"No, not really. I'm here now so what's the problem?" Jack questioned.

"The problem is that it is your first day, your brother made it here on time and I don't like your attitude. Go and sit down over there." Mr Clarkson replied sternly before pointing to a spare seat in the back row. He could tell that he was going to have fun with that one already, yet Josh seemed to be a lot to Jack. Maybe it wouldn't be so hard to tell the twins apart after all.

"Right, as I was saying. Today were are going to be looking at trust in Of Mice and Men. Can anyone give me a definition of the word trust?" Tom asked and looked around the room at the few hands that had been raised. Jack couldn't believe he was sitting in an English lesson what with everything else that was going on. He had stopped listening to what was being said in the lesson and had instead resorted to drawing on a spare piece of paper he had found in his pocket.

"Jack, since you had a lot to say for yourself when you came in, can you give me an example of who we can trust?" Mr Clarkson asked as he stood at the front of the class, pen at the ready to write his answer on the board.

"Trust? You should be able to trust your family. Not in my case. Family means nothing to me. You would think I would be able to trust my twin, but I can't. I can't trust anyone in my family!" Josh explained, getting progressively louder as he did so.

"Jack, shut up!" Josh shouted as he turned around in his seat to look at his twin. He couldn't believe that he was doing this in their first lesson. He watched as Jack got up out of seat and made his way over to Josh despite the many demands coming from Mr Clarkson to return to his seat.

"Oh, that's right. I'm embarrassing you now aren't I because I'm such a disappoint just because I don't agree with you, Natalie and Harry. But you know what? I'm ashamed of you. To have you as my twin." Jack said harshly as he leant in to Josh who was sat helplessly in his seat, tears emerging in his eyes.

"Oh look everyone, Josh is going to cry. Can't face the truth can you? I bet you're going to go running to Matt..." Jack started but he was cut short as Josh shot up out his seat and before Jack had the chance to move he felt a fist land squarely on his nose, blood instantly running out of it down his face, dripping onto his crisp white shirt.

"You idiot!" Jack yelled and was about to return the punch when Tom placed himself in between the twins, holding Jack back by his shoulders.

"Mr Byrne's office, now!" Tom ordered sternly as he marched the duo out of his class and down the stairs to the familiar office that the pair had just left.


	4. Chapter 4

_Hello, thanks for the reviews last chapter, I really appreciate the suggestions! Hope you enjoy this chapter, it is a bit short but if I put it with the next chapter then it would have been ridiculously long! Please remember to review this chapter!_

**Chapter 4:**

Opening the door to Mr Byrne's office, Michael looked up from the paperwork on his desk and saw an angry Tom entering the room followed by Josh and Jack, the latter holding a bloodied tissue up to his nose. Tom closed the door loudly behind him and marched over to the desk with the twins.

"What on Earth has happened here?" Michael asked as he looked from Jack with his bleeding nose to Josh who seemed to shaking with anger.

"They decided to have a family domestic in my lesson." Mr Clarkson explained as he walked over to the table and propped himself against it.

"What were you two arguing about?" Michael asked as he sat forward in his chair and looked at the two boys, neither saying a word.

"Come on, I need one of you to explain or I can Matt up here. It's your choice." Michael explained and he watched as Jack messed around with the tissue on his nose then to Josh.

"Jack decided to shout at me about not being able to trust his family so I told him to shut up." Josh explained as he looked at the floor. This wasn't the first time Jack had caused him to lose his temper. He knew how easily he got wound up.

"Right, but that doesn't explain how Jack got his injury." Michael said as he once again looked at the twins needing more information from them.

"My so-called twin punched me in the face!" Jack shouted as he pointed to his twin with his tissue revealing a blood smeared face.

"You provoked me and you know it! You know I have a short temper and once again you used that to make me look like the bad guy. Well done!" Josh snapped back at his twin.

"Alright, alright, calm down!" Tom shouted towards the twins who both reluctantly shut their mouths.

"I do not allow violence in my school." Mr Byrne said sternly to Josh who knew fine well that he was in the wrong.

"I didn't mean it. It just happened." Josh explained but was interrupted by Jack laughing.

"Ha, course you didn't mean it!" Jack said snidely as he looked at his twin.

"You know what, I'm glad I did it! You are a shit brother, in the past few years when I've needed you, you haven't been there. You hate me and I hate you." Josh said as tears began falling from his face as he said the words.

"So, a minute ago you didn't mean it and now you did? This is exactly why I can't trust any of you! So much for family! You're all just a bunch of liars and hypocrites!" Jack shouted as he charged towards the table and kicked a chair out of his way.

"Mr Clarkson could you go and get Matt for me please." Michael asked and Tom happily agreed to do so. He could tell that there was something seriously wrong with the family and it would be a lot easier to sort of if someone would give them the full story.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5:**

Walking towards the staff room Tom hoped that Matt would be there. He knew he had a free period and had a feeling he would either be here or in his classroom. Tom swung open the door to the staff room and looked around the room where he could see Sian and Matt sat in the corner having a conversation about something.

"Sorry to interrupt Matt but Michael wants to see you in his office." Tom said quietly to Matt as he watched Matt turn and look worryingly at Tom.

"What, now? Has something happened?" Matt asked confusingly as he perched himself on the edge of his seat eyes focused firmly on Tom.

"Jack and Josh have been fighting." Tom said as Matt shot up out of his seat, arms raised behind his head as he paced around the room.

"Just what we need. I told them this morning to behave!" Matt shouted frustratingly before thudding his way out of the staff room, Tom hot on his heels in case Michael needed any assistance.

As Matt opened the door to Michael's office he glared around the room, first to Jack and he could see that his nose had been bleeding, then to Josh who was on the verge of tears, his whole body shaking.

"I'm sorry to have to call you in here Matt but we're just not getting anywhere." Michael explained as he gestured for Matt to take a seat but he declined saying that he would rather stand.

"What did I say to you two this morning?" Matt asked angrily as he turned to the twins.

"To behave." Josh said quietly as he hung his head down to the floor, avoiding giving his brother any form of eye contact.

"Exactly! So do you care to tell me why I've been called in here?" Matt continued to ask as he stood arms folded staring at the twins waiting for an answer.

"I punched Jack." Josh said as he finally plucked up the courage to look Matt in the face. He was so ashamed at what he had done and he knew Matt wouldn't be impressed either.

"Why?" Matt snapped back as he continued to stare at the twins, but neither of them replied.

"Jack? This must have something to do with you. You know Josh only lashes out if he is wound up and you seem to have a tendency of doing that recently." Matt explained before silence once again fell upon the room. He couldn't believe that both of them had managed to get into trouble in their first lesson.

"What do you care?" Jack asked snidely to his older brother. He knew fine well that Matt didn't give a damn about any of them. It was his fault that the family had fallen to pieces but he's just too caught up in his own life to realise.

"I care because I'm your brother." Matt replied gently as he looked at Jack. He knew that they both had their differences but he thought Jack would have at least realise that Matt does care for him despite everything.

"Yeah, course. So that's why you left. Some brother you are. You're just as bad as him!" Jack shouted as he pointed his finger at Josh who was stood silently staring at the floor, tears sliding down his cheeks.

"Hey, don't speak about your twin like that! He's always been there for you. You don't realise how lucky you are to have him!" Matt shouted back trying to stick up for Josh. However, it didn't get him far.

"Oh that's right, once again siding with Josh! Never with me!" Jack shouted again and he could hear Mr Byrne in the background telling everyone to calm down.

"You know what, I can't deal with this anymore!" Josh suddenly shouted causing all heads to turn towards him as he grabbed his bag and hurried from the room. Matt was about to turn to go after him but he felt a hand on his arm holding him back.

"I'll go." Michael said calmly. He didn't think it would be good for Matt to go after him until he had calmed down.

"Tom, can you take Jack to the cooler to calm down please." Michael explained and he watched as Jack picked up his bag and slung it onto his shoulder before following Tom out of the room.

"I don't know what is going on here but I'm going to find out. It would be a lot easier if you would just explain to me." Michael said as he looked at Matt who was focused on the floor of the office.

"But, if you're not going to tell me then you had better get back to class. Next lesson is about to start and I believe you have a lesson." Michael explained, Matt giving his head a brief nod to understand that he had heard what Michael had said before leaving the room, Michael following behind to hunt around the school for Josh. He could tell today was going to be a long day.

_**Hi, I hope you enjoyed this chapter! I would just like to thank 'Milou' for the lovely review and to say that I do have a problem sorted behind the Wilding family, but it is kind of similar to the one suggested so I hope you like it, more of it will be getting revealed as the chapters go on! Also thank you to 'stranger' and 'me myself and i' for the reviews. I really appreciate them so remember to review this chapter and let me know what you think!**_


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6:**

Walking around the school Michael looked in empty classrooms, peered out of windows and asked any teachers he passed whether they had seen Josh. It was hard for the teachers to help since he was new and only Tom had met him so far but Michael was determined to find him and was pretty sure he wouldn't have left school grounds. He had only just moved here and Michael was confident that he wouldn't know the area and despite being in trouble on his first morning, Michael had a feeling that he wouldn't be the kind of person to leave the school premises.

As Michael continued his traipse around the school, he bumped into Sian in the science corridor. She could tell that he was on a mission and looked like he had lost something, or someone.

"Lost something?" Sian said as she made her way towards Michael who currently had his head poked through the door of an empty classroom.

"Someone, Joshua Wilding." Michael explained as he closed the classroom door behind him as he had found the room empty.

"As in Matt's brother?" Sian asked confusingly. She didn't expect to have any issues with the Wilding's due to Matt's good nature.

"Yes. Him and his twin brother have been fighting this morning and there is something not right with the family." Michael explained to Sian, the cogs turning in her brain as she tried to think of anything Matt might have said that would explain the situation.

"Have you tried talking to Matt about it?" Sian asked. It seemed obvious and she was sure Michael will have already tried it but it was all she could think of at the time.

"Yes, he doesn't want to talk about it either and now Josh has ran off. He's pretty upset about something so I'm hoping I might be able to get him to open up." Michael explained, Sian wishing him luck and that she would keep an eye out for him.

After finishing his look around the school Michael decided to head outside to see if he could find any sign of Josh out there. As he wondered around the playground he saw somebody sitting on the bench by the entrance staring out to the loch. Michael edged his way closer and he could instantly tell by the blonde hair that it was Josh. He walked over and gently sat down on the bench next to him, Josh's eyes giving him a quick look to see who had joined him before turning to focus on what was in front of him.

"Josh, what's going on?" Michael asked gently as he continued to look ahead. He didn't want to look at Josh in case it put him under pressure.

"I don't even know where to start." Josh said quietly. "Everything about my family is messed up." It was true. Ever since he could remember nothing had ever been simple with his family.

"What do you mean Josh?" Michael asked and he could see out of the corner of his eye Josh wiping tears away from his eyes. Michael, always being prepared, rummaged around in his pocket until he found a tissue which he passed to Josh.

"What has Matt told you? What was the reason he gave to you for us being here?" Josh asked as he turned to look at Michael. He hadn't asked Matt what he had told people, he just assumed it would be the truth but considering Mr Byrne seemed to be clueless about everything, he was beginning to doubt that.

"He told me that something unexpected had happened in the family and that you lot guys needed to move in with him." Michael explained and he could see the expression on Josh's face change.

"Typical. He really doesn't care about Mum. He expects now that we are away from her that we're just going to forget her too." Josh explained leaving Michael more confused than before.

"Has something happened to your Mum?" Michael asked gently as he didn't want to upset Josh anymore but he needed to get to the bottom of what is happening with this family before it gets any more out of hand.

"She's been in a crash and is in hospital. My Aunt Clara is looking after her and Matt decided to bring us up here to 'try and carry on as normal'. He doesn't give a shit about Mum, he never has." Josh said as fresh tears rose in his eyes, a combination of sadness and frustration.

"Is she ok?" Michael asked as he turned to look at Josh, his fists clenched on his lap as though he was ready to hit something, his body shaking.

"She's in a coma. Matt says there is nothing we can do but wait. I just feel so useless being away from her. She needs us. We're all she's got." Josh explained before breaking into sobs, Michael placing his hand on his shoulder as a sign of support.

"Come on," Michael said as he stood up causing Josh to pause and look up at him wondering where he was going to take him. "It's lunch in a few minutes. We're going to get some food then you, me, Matt, Jack and Natalie are all going to my office and we're going to sit down and sort this mess out."

"It's not as simple as that." Josh said as he looked up at Michael. He had no idea what he was letting himself in for by sitting the Wilding's down in a room to talk about the past. It never ends well but Josh was willing to give it a go. He couldn't go on like this anymore.

"Well, I'm sure we'll be able to sort it out somehow. Now let's go and get some lunch before it gets busy." Michael said letting out a smile which Josh returned and the duo made their way back up the steps into the school. For the first time Josh knew what it felt like to talk to someone who actually cared and was willing to do something to help. He just hoped it would work out.

_**I would like to thank Guest, stranger and milou for their lovely reviews. Glad you enjoyed the chapter and I hope you enjoyed this one! Please remember to review this one and I'm open for suggestions. Slowly but surely the back story is being revealed!**_


	7. Chapter 7

_**Just a bit of a warning, this chapter has some tough and sensitive issues in it about alcohol and abuse. I don't mean to upset any of you with it but just to give you all a bit of preparation! **_

**Chapter 7:**

After making his way round the school Michael had finally managed to find all the Wildings and herd them into his office. He found Jack sat in the cooler with Mr Clarkson finishing his lunch, Matt in his room staring into space and Natalie outside with Dynasty and Imogen.

"Right, I've invited you all here to sort out whatever it is that is going on with you as a family." Mr Byrne said as he looked around the room; Natalie sitting at the round table with Josh and Jack, Matt sitting on one of the chair in front of Michaels desk.

"I was speaking with Josh earlier and he told me about your Mum being in hospital." Michael stated as he looked around the room. Natalie and Josh both stared down at the table, Jack turning to briefly glare at Matt before he too diverted his eyes to the floor.

"Why didn't anyone think to tell me?" Michael asked as he gazed around the room at the confused faces, pausing longer on Matt who was looking at the ground. Michael thought he would have at least told him this bit. It might explain why the twins are playing up so much.

"What? We all thought Matt had told you." Natalie explained as she looked at Matt who still had his eyes fixed on the ground. She didn't understand why he hadn't told Mr Byrne why they were at Waterloo Road.

"I didn't tell you because I thought you would start asking questions." Matt said keeping his eyes down. He could feel the stare coming from his siblings and he couldn't bear to look at them.

"About what?" Michael asked as he turned to Matt who was sat nervously playing with his thumb as he sat in the chair.

"Our past." Matt said simply before briefly looking up at Michael then tilting his head down again.

"Why didn't you tell him? Is it because you're ashamed? Or is it because you know you're in the wrong?" Jack asked from the table as he stared right at Matt causing him to look up at stare right back at Jack.

"Jack, just leave it. It's all in the past." Natalie said to her younger brother as he lent across the table to place her hand on his arm.

"No Nat. Mr Byrne here has the right to know what Matt is really like. How selfish he is." Jack said as he continued to stare his brother deep in the eyes.

"It wasn't like that Jack and you know it. You know what Dad was like." Matt said explained but he knew Jack wasn't having any of it.

"Are you going to tell him or am I?" Jack asked sternly and he watched as Matt glanced around the room, Natalie and Josh both sat awkwardly not wanting to go through their past, Michael sat wondering what on Earth had happened.

"Neither of you are. I will. I know more about it than you do Jack, you and Josh were only little. Matt you might have to help me though, there are some bits even I don't understand." Natalie said before taking a deep breath, turning her chair so that it faced Mr Byrne.

"When I was a baby, Harry must have been 5 and Matt was 11, Mum and Dad split up because they were always arguing. Dad was an alcoholic you see and Mum was getting sick of him as she had to look after us as well as him and it was too much for her." Natalie started and she could see Michael listening attentively, Matt sat awkwardly as he listened to his past being recited back to him, Jack and Josh listening nervously. They had been told little information about life before they came into the world so they wanted to get it all clear in their heads.

"When they split Dad never left even though Mum told him to. He said he was looking for a place to go but Matt never saw him looking. He just stayed in the house and continued to drink. Anyways, a year later Mum decided to get back with him which Matt wasn't happy about but he was only 12, there was nothing he could do about it. A year later Jack and Josh were born and Dad tried to sober up. He realised he had missed Matt and Harry growing up and didn't want it to happen again. But it didn't work and he went back on the booze not long after leaving Mum with us again. She couldn't cope looking after us and Dad and Matt ended up looking after us a lot of the time. I remember him taking Harry and I to school, the twins to nursery, doing the shopping whilst Mum stayed at home." Natalie explained, pausing as she thought about the next part in the story. She didn't know how Matt was going to react. They had never talked about it before and Natalie wasn't sure if Josh and Jack knew this part of the story. She glanced nervously over at Matt who briefly looked at her, then back to the floor.

"Dad's drinking got worse and he started getting violent. I remember him throwing things in the next room and shouting at Mum but one day I got ill at school and Matt had to take me home. Mum was out and Dad was drinking so Matt told me to go upstairs. I could hear them talking downstairs about why we were home and Dad's voice kept getting louder. I heard some thudding, something breaking and then lots of shouting from Matt. I was too scared to go and see." Natalie said, her voice getting shaky as she thought back to the memory. She looked at Matt who was looking straight at her.

"I didn't know you heard me." Matt said heartbroken as he looked at his little sister. She shook her head before glancing over and Jack and Josh, both looking as confused as the other.

"Heard what?" Jack asked confusingly looking from Matt to Natalie, wondering who was going to continue.

"I was shouting at Dad to stop." Matt said quietly. He had lost the power to project his voice above a whisper as a large lump emerged in his throat. He glanced at Michael and had a feeling he knew what was coming next.

"To stop what?" Jack asked again as he leant forward in his chair towards his older brother.

"He...he was hitting me." Matt said quietly, Jack shooting up out of his seat, pacing around the room with his hands rubbing the back of his head before sitting down to continue listening.

"He was annoyed that Natalie and I had disturbed him. From that point on whenever I was alone with him whether it was when you lot had popped out somewhere with Mum or you were asleep in bed he would hit me." Matt explained before looking up at his siblings. He couldn't believe Natalie had heard it happening. She must have been so scared but it explains why she tried to keep away from him. Matt always thought it was because of the drink. He then looked at Josh who was sat in complete shock, unable to say or do anything.

"Why didn't you tell Mum?" Jack asked.

"I was scared. I was scared that if I told her then he would turn on her so I kept it to myself. However, one day when Mum took you all to the shop Dad kept me back. I knew why but Mum was getting suspicious, she thought I was starting on the booze as well. She took you all next door for a few minutes and came back in to try and catch me in the act but all she saw was Dad hitting me with his slipper. She was horrified. She told him to stop but he wouldn't and said that he wouldn't turn on her if she promised to keep it a secret and that's what she did. I continued to get beat up even though she knew!" Matt exclaimed, all the anger from years of abuse finally letting itself out.

"Bullshit!" Jack shouted. "Mum wouldn't have let him do that and you know it! He didn't beat you at all!" Jack continued.

"Jack, he did! I heard him! I even saw some of the bruises when Matt did the washing up and had his arms showing. You were only toddlers when this was happening so you wouldn't remember!" Natalie replied letting out another secret that Matt didn't realise she knew.

"Anyways, I eventually got sick of being Dad's punch bag. I couldn't take it anymore and I knew Mum couldn't get him to stop so that's when I left." Matt said. He looked at Mr Byrne and he could tell that he certainly wasn't expecting this. He glanced over at the siblings briefly before taking a deep breath. He needed to continue so that everyone would understand.

_**Well, that was a bit of a full on chapter! I was going to carry on and put the rest of the 'back story' in this chapter but thought you all might need a bit of a breather so I'm splitting it over two chapters. Thank you to all who reviewed the last chapter (I would name you all but I'm too excited to write the next chapter!) and please let me know what you think of this chapter!**_


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8:**

Silence had fallen over the office as Mr Byrne, Natalie, Jack and Josh waited for Matt to continue with the story. He couldn't believe that Jack didn't believe him about their Dad but he was grateful that Natalie was helping and was trying to get them on side.

"I moved in with a friend and I came back as much as I could to see you guys but it was difficult. Dad didn't want me in the house. I tried my best but I didn't want to put you all in danger." Matt explained, stopping to take a sip of water from the glass on the table.

"I ended up going to university and just as I finished I moved back and that's when Dad died. I never got invited to the funeral, I found out about it due to the piece in the local paper. I was glad though, it meant that I could wipe him from my life. I tried to come and see you all and support you but I couldn't." Matt explained when he was once again interrupted by Jack.

"You wanted to support us? You left us to live with an abusive alcoholic!" Jack shouted. "Why couldn't you come back then? Too ashamed for leaving us?" Jack asked snidely to his brother.

"No. Mum wouldn't let me. She blamed me for leaving and Dad dying." Matt said as he stared at Jack.

"Bullshit!" Jack exclaimed again as he got up and walked towards Matt. "Mum wouldn't let you in the house because you left. And do you know what happened when you left? Mum was the one who got beat. If what you say is true, you could have stopped that! We had to fend for ourselves when you left. Even when Dad died Mum was a mess! You have no idea!" Jack shouted. He couldn't believe Matt was making all these lies up to make Mum look bad. He wasn't going to fall for it even if Harry, Natalie and Josh did.

"Jack it's true. She wouldn't let me see you. I did try." Matt said. He always felt guilty for leaving his siblings behind but he knew if he stayed in that house any longer he himself would snap and he didn't want to make things any worse. He wished he could have taken them with him but it wouldn't have been possible.

"You know what, I'm sick of listening to all this crap." Jack muttered as he grabbed his bag and stormed out of the office no one even bothering to call him back. Michael thought it would be best to let him calm down and think things over. A lot had been said and it must be a shock for them to hear all this and relive what had happened to them.

Silence filled the room once again as nobody had any idea what to say or do. Natalie sat and stared at the table fiddling with her hair. She felt sick thinking back to what Dad did to Mum and Matt, the sounds of thudding, whimpers, shouts. Josh was just trying to block it all from his mind. He had tried to forget it all since Dad died but this had just brought it all back and he had no idea what to think anymore.

"Matt, I think you should all go home and sort things out. It's been a tough day for you all." Michael said gently as he looked at Matt before glancing over to Natalie and Josh who both looked totally drained from the day's events.

"No. I can't. I have lessons to teach." Matt said quickly as he got up out of the seat rushing towards the door before Michael could say anything. The last thing he wanted was to go home and have to have another confrontation with Jack. He just wanted something to take his mind off his shambles of a life for a bit. Music. It was because of his bad start in life that he found the beauty of music as he turned to it to get away from the horrors in his own life and it had become a passion ever since.

Michael sighed as he watched the door to his office shut leaving him with Natalie and Josh who both turned to look at him wondering what they were going to do next.

"Sir, I want to go to lessons." Natalie said. "I need to take my mind off things."

"Are you sure? You don't have to." Mr Byrne said as he turned to face the two teenagers. He was surprised that the thought of lessons had even crossed Natalie's mind after everything that she had just recalled.

"Yeah, I'm sure. Thanks sir." Natalie said as she got up out of her seat and made her way over to the door.

"Natalie, remember I'm here if you need to talk. You too Josh." Mr Byrne said as Natalie turned to give him a smile before leaving the office leaving Michael and Josh alone. Michael turned to look at Josh and could see that his eyes were welling up with tears, his body shaking. Michael got up and walked over to the table and sat down on the chair next to him.

"Josh, I'm here if you want to talk." Mr Byrne said gently as he looked at the teen. He had some idea of what he had gone through as his own Dad had beat his Mum.

"I'm just sick of all the arguing. I can't deal with it anymore!" Josh cried as he punched his fist down on the table out of frustration. He was sick of Matt and Jack constantly being at each other's throats. He thought things would have changed once Dad died but they had only got worse.

"I know it must be difficult but you have to be strong. You'll all get through this. Matt and Jack will sort things out." Mr Byrne said encouragingly. "It will be difficult and might take some time but things always sort themselves out in the end."

"Time? Yeah right! Those two will never sort things out. It just going to be arguments all the time and I'm sick of it!" Josh snapped before he too picked up his bag, slinging it over his shoulder and made his way out of the office slamming the door behind him leaving Michael to wonder what on Earth he was going to do with the Wilding family.

_**Thank you so much for the lovely reviews so far! I really appreciate them and they certainly give me the motivation to carry on! I hope you enjoyed this chapter, the Wildings have certainly been through it. If you have any suggestions of plot ideas or characters (pupils or teachers) then feel free to suggest them and if they fit in with my plans then I will try my best to fit them in! Please remember to review!**_


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9:**

After leaving the office Natalie realised that her next lesson was actually music with Matt. She was glad of this as it meant she could keep an eye on her brother. She looked through the window in the door briefly before entering the classroom and she could see Matt sat on his piano stool staring out of the window, his back towards the rest of the class.

Slowly opening the door she thought Matt would turn around to see who had entered but he didn't even register anyone had come in so she shut the door behind her and went to take her seat next to a girl with red hair who answered to the name Rhiannon. She had seen her in the corridors but hadn't actually spoken to her, but just like everyone else in the school Rhiannon seemed to know everything about Natalie.

"You're Mr Wilding's sister right?" Rhiannon turned to ask as she finished her conversation with the boy sat on the other side of her. He had brown hair and a cheeky face.

"Yes, I am." Natalie replied before turning to look at the boy next to Rhiannon again who was busy rolling up bits of paper and creating a small pile on the table beside him.

"That's Darren." Rhiannon said as she turned to face the boy, giving him a big smile which he returned, both their eyes twinkling as if someone had just poured glitter into them.

Natalie decided to leave the two love birds to it and turned her glaze to Matt who was still facing the window. She didn't know whether she should get up and remind him that he has a class waiting for him, whether to go and get Mr Byrne or whether to just leave him. She knew how hard that meeting in Mr Byrne's office must have been for him having to relive his past and think back to what both Mum and Dad had done to him. He didn't deserve any of it. Natalie didn't blame him for leaving, he had simply had enough and she understood that. She just wished Jack would.

Just like her brother Natalie got lost in thought and as Rhiannon turned round to chat to her she could see that she was staring into space, her thoughts on other things. Rhiannon didn't know whether to disturb her or whether to just leave her to it but suddenly a piece of rolled up paper went flying past her, landing on the next table.

"Darren!" Rhiannon shouted as she turned to look at him. Darren paused, rolled up paper in one hand, a ruler in the other. She knew that he had been flicking them at people using the ruler and she wouldn't have minded until that one nearly hit her.

"What? It's not like he's teaching us anything!" Darren exclaimed as he looked at Mr Wilding who hadn't moved since the class had entered the room. However, Mr Wilding must have heard this as he turned around on the stool and looked at the group of teenagers in front of him.

"Right." Mr Wilding shouted suddenly causing the class to fall silent, Natalie pulled back into reality as she looked at her brother and wondered what he was going to do next. "I want you get out your coursework and make a start on your corrections." Matt explained and he watched as the class started to get out their folders and get on with their work.

However, Darren wasn't looking impressed. "Why do we have to do this? Just because he can't be bothered to teach us!" Darren exclaimed, ignoring the glares he was receiving from Natalie.

"Darren, just do it." Rhiannon replied as she opened her folder but she could see where Darren was coming from. Why should they bother when the teacher can't?

"No! I'm not going to do it." Darren said as he slammed his folder shut causing Mr Wilding to turn and look at him. He watched as Darren picked up the ruler and started firing paper balls around the room again. It wasn't long until Rhiannon was distracted and pulled into what Darren was doing.

"You two. Outside." Mr Wilding said simply as he looked Darren and Rhiannon straight in the face, Natalie sat looking at the scene that was developing next her whilst pretending to get on with her work.

"You can't make us Sir." Rhiannon said smugly as she leaned back in her seat, arms folded. Natalie turned to look at Rhiannon and she just wanted to drag her out by her hair but she knew that wouldn't help anyone. She nervously watched as Matt walked closer to them and pressed his hands down on the table and Natalie could see that his body was shaking.

"Outside, now!" Matt shouted but Natalie knew it wasn't going to work. The duo sat there as if nothing had just been said. Natalie looked up and put her pen down on the table. She watched as Matt made his way over to the door, his hand resting on the handle. She thought he was going to walk out when he suddenly spun round.

"You two think you're so smart don't you? Do you really think being annoying and irritating is going to get you far in life?" Matt shouted as he walked back towards Rhiannon and Darren who were looking a little taken back by this shouting as they had never heard Mr Wilding shout before. He was normally fun and chilled out.

"You really have no idea. Now can you just get out of this classroom like I asked you before!" Matt shouted as he picked up Darren's folder and held it out in his hand towards the direction of the door so he could collect it on his way past.

"No." Darren said simply and he too leaned back in his seat like Rhiannon, a smug grin spreading across his face. He looked at Mr Wilding and wondered what he was going to say next but nothing could have prepared the class for what he was going to do, but no one was as shocked as Natalie.

Darren's coursework folder flew across the room like a blue blur before landing by the classroom door, paper flying out of it as it made its way through the air. The class let out a gasp as they took in what Mr Wilding had done and Natalie shot out of her seat.

"Matt!" she screamed as she made her way over to her brother. "You need to calm down! You can't do things like that!"

"Just watch me! I'm sick of being accused as a liar, being accused of being selfish, not doing things properly, having students who don't give a toss and just annoy me all day every day. I'm done with it all!" Matt shouted as the class stared shockingly at their teacher as he pushed a pile of books of his desk before throwing one of them at a nearby wall. Natalie stood motionless as she watched her brother go into self destruct mode. She had never seen him like and had no idea what to do and before she had chance to think Matt grabbed his bag from his chair and stormed out of the class, no apology, no backward glance.

Natalie dashed over to her seat where she too grabbed her bag and hurried out of the room which was still completely silent after what had just happened. She rushed down the corridor looking for her brother but he was nowhere to be seen. She looked around as much of the school as she could but she had no idea if that was all the school or not as she was still learning her way round. There was only one thing she could do, and that was to tell Mr Byrne what had happened.

_**Sorry about the late update, I was away at the weekend and then Waterloo Road was on last night so I didn't have time! I hope you enjoyed this chapter, I had to rewrite it several times as I couldn't get it right. I'm still not sure if I have got it right but I still hope you like it! Thanks for all the reviews so far and remember to let me know what you think of this chapter!**_


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10:**

Meanwhile, in the Science labs, Josh and Jack had eventually made their way to their lesson even though both had turned up reluctantly. Jack wasn't going to go but he had seen Josh go into the classroom and he really needed to speak to him to he decided to go. They hadn't spoke a word to each other since they had left Mr Byrne's office. Josh has no idea what to say and Jack is trying to pluck up the courage to ask what he wants to know.

As they entered the classroom Josh looked at the clock and realised that they were ten minutes late. They both quietly sat down in two seats next to each other and they could feel Mrs Diamond's eye focused on them. She had guessed that they were the Wilding twins and assumed that they had been with Mr Byrne trying to get to the bottom of things so she briefly introduced herself and handed them an exercise book each before carrying on with the lesson.

"I want you all to open up the text book to page 51 and to answer the questions. You may work in pairs. You've got half an hour then we will go through the answers." Mrs Diamond explained to the class before sitting down at her desk to do the last of her marking. Every now and again she glanced up and looked around the class to make sure everyone was getting on with their work. However, when she glanced over to the twins she noticed that they both had their books closed, no pens out and they were both just staring into space as if they were on a different planet.

"Josh, what did you make of what Matt said?" Jack asked quietly as he turned to his twin who continued to stare straight ahead, refusing to look at his twin.

"Josh! Are you on his side or mine?" Jack asked seriously as he leant over the desk so that his face was obstructing Josh's view and he had no choice but to look at him. However, Josh once again didn't reply. Josh didn't know what to think anymore and he certainly didn't want to take sides.

"Joshua and Jack, are you doing those questions?" Mrs Diamond asked as she placed her pen down on her desk. She watched as they both turned to look at her and then down at their books where they realised they hadn't done anything. They hadn't even made it look like they were doing something.

"No, we're not!" Jack shouted. He didn't care if he got into trouble anymore. His family was an entire mess and the last thing he wanted to do was sit and answer questions about Science. He turned to look at Josh and could see that tears were once again forming in his eyes.

"Do you care to tell me why? You're here to do work!" Mrs Diamond replied as she looked at Jack. She was beginning to understand why Michael was having so many issues with the boys and she wondered if he had found out what was driving the family apart yet.

"I've got better things to do than sit here and answer these bloody questions! It's all a waste of time!" Jack shouted as he jumped out of his seat knocking it to the ground.

"Jack, outside, now." Sian said sternly as she pointed towards the door and Jack gathered his bag up from the floor and slung it over his shoulder.

"Don't worry, I'm going." Jack said snidely as he walked out of the classroom and continued down the corridor and out of sight. Sian didn't even bother to call after him as she knew it wouldn't work and decided that she would go and see Michael once the lesson was over.

"Josh, are you ok?" Sian asked as she turned to look at the other twin. She could see the tears in his eyes as he tried to keep them back. She had no idea what was going on with the family or anything about the twins other than they were Matt's brothers which was making the situation rather difficult.

"Yeah, never better." Josh said sarcastically as he looked Sian in the face. She had no idea what to say or do but she couldn't just leave him like this.

"Hey, I'm just trying to help." Sian replied as she looked at Josh. She could certainly tell he was a Wilding by his appearance. She just wished they were a bit more like Matt with their personalities.

"Course you are. You've all been saying that today and all you've done is making everything worse. I'm sick of it; all the arguing, the secrets, trying to act like everything is normal, starting this place. I didn't want to come!" Josh shouted as all the tears he tried to fight back rolled down his face as Sian stood there shocked and useless. She watched as Josh grabbed his back and followed suit like his brother out of the class and down the corridor and out of sight.

_**New chapter! Hope you enjoyed it! Remember to review, they mean a lot!**_


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11: **

Walking down the corridor Mr Byrne couldn't believe what Matt had done. He never expected him to do anything like this despite everything going on in his personal life. He was truly grateful for Natalie coming to explain to him what had happened straight away so that he could get a teacher to cover the rest of Mr Wilding's lesson before going on a hunt for Matt with Natalie.

"Things must be pretty tough at home." Michael commented as they walked down the English corridor as they searched around the school, Matt's car still visible in the car park suggesting that he was still on the premises.

"I guess. I just wish Matt and Jack would talk about things. It's like they can only shout or not communicate with each other at all." Natalie explained sadly as Mr Byrne held the door open for her to go through. Making their way down the rest of the corridor they eventually came across Matt stood staring out of a window.

"Matt, what on Earth happened in there?" Michael asked as he stood next to him, Natalie hovering in the distance so that the pair could talk in private for a bit.

"I don't know. I just snapped. I'm so sorry Michael." Matt said apologetically as he turned to look his boss in the face. He genuinely couldn't believe what he had done and he felt so ashamed of himself. He had no idea what he could say to Michael to make up for what he had done so instead he just returned to gazing out of the window.

"I know this isn't like you but you do need to keep control of your emotions Matt otherwise someone will get hurt." Michael explained and as Matt was about to respond the double doors at the end of the corridor opened revealing Joshua and Jack.

"Where are you two going? Why aren't you in lesson?" Matt asked as he walked towards the duo, Natalie now joining the group.

"Jack got sent out for not doing his work and walked off and I ended up arguing with Mrs Diamond and walked out. We found each other in the corridor and decided to come and find you." Josh explained to Matt. He knew there was no point in lying as Mrs Diamond would only tell them what had happened anyways so it would sound better coming from them.

"Boys! You know you can't argue with the teachers and walk out of lessons!" Matt shouted as he looked disappointingly at the twins in front of him.

"Well you two aren't in lessons either!" Jack shouted as he looked at Matt and Natalie and Matt knew that Jack was right and that he shouldn't of shouted.

"I guess. Look, I'm sorry for shouting." Matt said gently as he looked at the twins before turning to Michael. Matt had no idea what to do about the situation. He didn't know if Michael would want them all back in his office, whether he would just want himself to talk to or whether to send the twins to the cooler.

"Matt, I think you should all just go home and sort things out. Come back in tomorrow for a fresh start." Michael explained as he patted Matt on the back and left the family to gather their things together and make their way home.

_**Sorry about not updating in a while again, just started a new job and it's pretty tiring hence why this chapter is a bit short and a bit rubbish. However, it is only a filler chapter and the next one will be more interesting! Please remember to review and let me know if this story is worth continuing! Thank you!**_


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12:**

Shutting the door behind him Matt looked round his flat and let out a sigh. He was glad to be home and even though they wouldn't admit it, he was pretty sure Natalie, Josh and Jack were too. Dropping his bag down onto the cream carpet he made his way into the kitchen where he took off his jacket and draped it over the worktop before flicking the switch on the kettle.

"Anybody want a hot drink?" Matt shouted to his siblings who had all gone and sat on the sofa. Natalie had moved into the only spare room Matt had in his two bed-roomed flat so the twins were having to camp in the living room alternating between themselves who slept on the sofa and who slept in a sleeping bag on the floor.

"No thanks Matt." Natalie replied as the boys shook their heads. Natalie explained that she was going to catch up on some coursework in her room whilst Josh said he was going to have a lie down as he was feeling tired. Matt said he could go to sleep in his bed so that he wouldn't be disturbed. That left Matt with Jack.

As Matt stirred his coffee he glanced over at Jack who was sat motionlessly staring out of the window at the view over Greenock, the loch in the distance. Matt picked up his mug and went to join Jack on the sofa as he felt this was a good time to try and talk things through.

"Jack we need to talk. We need to get things sorted." Matt said gently as he turned to face Jack, placing his coffee on the table to cool down first.

"I know." Jack replied as he continued to stare out of the window. He had something he wanted to tell Matt but he just didn't know how.

"It wasn't my fault what happened to Mum." Matt started. "Dad was a bully."

"I know." Jack started and decided he should just get it out into the open. He took a deep breath then turned to look at Matt. "I tried to stand up to him one day." Jack said and he watched as Matt turned all his attention to Jack. "He was shouting at Mum and then I heard him slap her so I stormed in. He shouted at me so I shouted back saying that he shouldn't hit Mum and I went to hit him myself but he was too fast and he ended up hitting me instead. He was going to punch me again but I ran out of the room and it was Mum who ended up getting it." Jack explained. "I don't mean to blame you. I know really it isn't your fault. It was all Dad's but he isn't here so I guess I just put all the blame on you because you are." Jack sighed and he turned to look at Matt.

Looking at his face Jack could see that Matt had tears in his eyes, his knees were tucked tightly into his chest. "I had no idea Jack. I had no idea that Dad had hit you too." Matt said quietly as he looked at his younger brother. Matt felt bad enough that Dad hit him and Mum, never mind Jack too.

"It was only that once. I was too scared to stand up to him after that and Natalie and Josh weren't stupid enough to even try." Jack explained and he could feel tears starting to form in his own eyes as he thought of all the pain their family had been through because of their Dad. All the arguments they had been through and the man who caused them all wasn't even here anymore.

"That's not the point Jack. The fact is he still hit you. And you know what, I really admire you for trying to stand up to him." Matt explained. He could feel himself looking at Jack in a whole new light.

"Matt. I'm so sorry for blaming you for everything." Jack said quietly. He was unable to speak. The lump in his throat had become too big to swallow, the tears brimming at the edge of his eyes.

"Hey, it's fine." Matt said as he pulled his little brother in for hug, the tears finally escaping from his eyes. The tears that he had been fighting back all those years.

"No it's not. I've been a right arse to you all this time making your life hell, blaming you for everything when it wasn't your fault." Jack cried as he continued to cuddle into Matt.

"Jack, listen to me. All that is in the past ok? Dad's gone. He's not going to hurt Mum, you or me ever again. All that matters now is getting this family back together again." Matt explained as he stroked Jack's hair back from his face. He remembered doing this to him and Josh when they were little when they had been play fighting and one had got hurt or when they weren't feeling well. It felt good to finally be able to talk to Jack and to finally understand what had happened.

"Is Mum going to be alright?" Jack asked as he sat back up on the sofa wiping the tears away from his eyes.

"I hope so." Matt said as he looked into Jack's eyes. Matt really wanted the opportunity to put things right between them as well. If it was possible with Jack then it would be possible with Mum too.

The duo sat there for a few minutes snuggled into each other like they did when they were younger and it felt good. It felt good to know that they were back on the same side, that they were able to talk to each and to be able to rebuild the bridge between them.


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13:**

The following morning Matt wakes up to the sound of his alarm going off. It was 7am. Time to get up and ready for school. As he lazily dragged his body out of bed and into the living room he couldn't help but smile as he saw Josh laid snuggled up in the sleeping bag on the floor, Jack sprawled out across the sofa with one arm dangling off the edge. However, as he looked around the flat he suddenly realised how messy it was. He had never took into consideration how messy three teenagers can be. They had also had a family night in watching a film last night so there was empty pizza boxes and bits of popcorn scattered around the room. Matt sighed. He would have to clean it all up at some point but first he needed to get everyone up, dressed and fed.

"Rise and shine boys!" Matt said cheerily as he made his way into the kitchen to once again flick the switch on the kettle to make a cup of coffee to wake himself up. He got out four bowls from the cupboard and placed them on the work top along with a box of cereal and a loaf of bread. Matt grinned as he heard groans and mumbles coming from the slow moving forms in the lounge before knocking on Natalie's door to make sure that she was also awake.

After an hour of rushing around the flat trying to find clean clothes and battling to get the last of the milk for breakfast, the Wilding family were finally ready to set off for school. They all piled into Matt's car and once again made their way to Waterloo Road and, much to Matt's relief, everyone seemed a lot happier about their second day, especially Jack.

"Right, I don't want to hear any complaints from you lot today. Only good feedback." Matt explained as he pulled up in the car park and turned towards his younger siblings. It felt so good to be able to act like a family again with no arguments. He watched as they all nodded their heads in agreement before making their way out of the car and into school.

As Matt grabbed his bags out of the boot of his car he saw Michael Byrne making his way over towards him.

"Morning Matt." Michael said as he grabbed some of the bags out of Matt's hand so that he was able to close his boot more easily without dropping anything on the floor.

"Morning Michael. Look I'm sorry about yesterday. We all had a good chat last night and everything is sorted." Matt explained as the duo made their way down the corridor towards Matt's music room so that they could leave all his stuff in there that he had brought in for a lesson.

"They all certainly look happier, especially Jack." Michael explained propping himself up against a desk in Matt's class, Matt doing the same.

"Yeah, we had a heart to heart last night then had a family night in." Matt explained.

"Well, it sounds like things are getting back on track. Remember, I'm here if you or any of the others need to talk to me." Michael reminded him before turning and leaving Matt to get his preparations underway for his first lesson. Matt was determined that today was going to be a good day.

_**Sorry it's a short chapter. Bit of a filler really. Hope you enjoyed it and remember to please leave a review! **_


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14:**

Since starting Waterloo Road the Wilding family had a good morning. No one got into trouble and everyone was happy. Natalie had made friends with Dynasty and Imogen whilst Jack and Josh had made friends with Leo and Lenny.

"Matt!" Tom shouted as he walked down the corridor towards the staff room.

"Is everything ok?" Matt asked confusingly. He knew Josh and Jack had been in his lesson that morning and he was desperately hoping that they had been behaving themselves.

"Yeah, don't worry. I just wanted to let you know that Josh was brilliant in my class this morning!" Tom explained and he could see the relief disappear from Matt.

"We were acting out Romeo and Juliet and he made a fantastic Romeo. He really put his heart and soul into it. He could be a budding actor one day." Tom explained and he watched a smile spread itself across Matt's face.

"Well, he has certainly inherited the drama gene." Matt joked before thanking Tom for letting him know about Josh. It felt good to know that Josh was getting himself stuck in with something as Matt knew how shy he could be.

As the day went on Matt continued to receive praise about his younger siblings. First from Grantly who was impressed by Natalie's analysis of King Lear and then from Sian who was astonished by Jack's work in Science.

At the end of the day Matt went and met Josh, Jack and Natalie by his car and he couldn't help but beam as he saw them huddled there. He could tell that they had had a good day as they too were smiling and laughing away with each other and he thought it would be fun to take them out for dinner as a reward.

"Well done! All I've had is good reports! High five!" Matt exclaimed as he high fived them individually. He unlocked the car where he pilled all their bags into the boot and then got into the car himself.

"I was thinking, should we go out for a meal or something? What do you think?" Matt asked as he turned once again in his seat to look at the trio who were all looking at each other waiting for someone to give him an answer.

"We were planning on having a quiet night in. Josh and I were going to sort the lounge out from last night and Jack wants to give Aunt Cora a ring." Natalie explained to Matt who nodded his head in agreement.

"That's fine. Dinner can happen another night. I have to admit the lounge is a disgrace." Matt said as he put the key in the ignition and turned it, the engine bursting into life and the Wildings once again set off home.

Leaving the car below in the car park, Matt, Natalie, Josh and Jack climbed up the few flights of stairs to the flat and as they walked along the corridor they paused briefly as they saw someone sitting outside the door.

"Harry!" Natalie shouted as she ran towards her older brother. It felt like ages since they had seen him as he was currently away at Edinburgh university studying medicine.

"What are you do here?" Matt asked surprisingly as he didn't expect him to be here. He was surprised that Harry even knew where he lived. Matt couldn't help but smile as he looked at his younger brother. He took in his brown hair that was crumpled on his head, his blue eyes piercing into Matt's.

"Can we talk inside?" Harry asked quietly making Matt feel nervous. He unlocked the door and watched as all his siblings piled in. He paused before going in bracing himself for whatever it was that Harry was going to tell him. He just hoped that it was going to be good news but something was telling him it wasn't going to be.

_**Hope you enjoyed this chapter! Does Harry come bearing good news or bad? Suggestions welcome as I can't decide yet! Please remember to review to let me know people are still reading and enjoying this!**_


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15:**

As Matt shuffled around in the kitchen making coffees for everyone nobody uttered a word. They all sat in silence in the lounge not knowing what to say to each other. They had no idea if it was going to be good news or bad and small talk didn't seem right. Matt carried through the mugs full of hot liquid, placing them gently on the wooden table before taking the last remaining space on the sofa. He looked worryingly at Harry.

"Aunt Cora's been on the phone." Harry started and he watched as everyone sat more upright, hanging on every word that Harry was saying.

"Matt, she tried to call you but couldn't get through because your phone was switched off." Harry explained as he looked at his older sibling.

"Yeah, the battery is dead. What did she say? Is it Mum?" Matt asked shakily. He couldn't bear to hear what Harry was going to say. He had only just got the family back together and whatever news Harry was about to say could shatter it all.

"The doctors at the hospital say Mum is going to be ok." Harry said, the room filled with sighs of relief as his siblings held their breath whilst listening to what he had said. "She's come round and is doing well and should be out within a week."

"That's great news." Matt said as he looked at Natalie who was crying happy tears then to Jack and Josh. Josh was sat grinning but Jack didn't seem so happy.

"Yes, but that's not all of what Aunt Cora said. There's something else." Harry said and the room was suddenly filled with silence again. Matt had a feeling that this wasn't going to be so good but he had no idea what it could be. "Mum says she doesn't want Natalie and the twins to move back."

Matt didn't take in what Harry had just said straight away. He looked confusingly at his brother who looked down as he didn't want to see their faces. He knew they weren't going to be happy and he hated having to be the one to tell them.

"What do you mean she doesn't want us to move back?" Natalie asked quietly as she looked at Harry, the tears in her eyes no longer happy.

"I don't know. I'm just saying what Aunt Cora told me." Harry said innocently. He didn't know anymore than that and he felt bad for leaving them wondering but Aunt Cora refused to say anything else down the phone.

"Well, does it mean that Mum is going to move up here and join us?" Jack asked and all he got in response was Harry shrugging his shoulders, his gazed fixed on the floor taking in the detail on the rug.

"Pass me your phone." Matt said sharply to Harry who rummaged around briefly in his pocket before passing his phone to Matt. He knew exactly what he was going to do. HE was going to call Aunt Cora and ask to speak to their Mum.

"Wait here whilst I speak to Aunt Cora. We need to know what she means by this." Matt explained before getting up hastily out of his seat where he walked to his bedroom, shutting the door behind him leaving the Wilding family sat in silence once again, thoughts whirling around in their heads about what it might mean.

_**Thank you so much for the reviews – they mean a lot! Keep them coming! I would especially like to thank PadfootJR for the suggestion, it was really good and it is going to be used in some way or another! **_


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter 16:**

Half an hour past before Matt remerged from his bedroom. The Wildings had heard muffled shouting coming from in the room but they couldn't quite work out what Matt was saying. They watched nervously as Matt walked over to his siblings, his mobile hanging limply by his side.

"What did she say?" Jack asked anxiously as he turned to face Matt who had now sat down on the sofa, Jack and Josh on one side, Natalie on the other and Harry on the other sofa. He looked into their faces and knew from the looks in their eyes that he couldn't tell them the truth of why Mum doesn't want them back. Not yet.

"Your Aunt Cora wouldn't let me speak to Mum. She says she was tired and is not to be disturbed so I asked her about it and she says that she didn't know why." Matt said as he looked down at his dark coloured jeans. He felt bad for lying but he didn't know what else to do.

"So what's going to happen to us?" Natalie asked quietly as she looked at Matt, her eyes piercing his.

"For now you're going to stay here with me. I know it's cramped but we'll move some furniture about to try and make some more room." Matt explained. He wasn't going to give up on his siblings just because his Mum was. It wasn't their fault.

"None of this makes sense." Jack said as he shot up off the sofa and turned to look at Matt for answers but he was unable to give him any. When Jack realised that Matt wasn't going to say anything he turned to walk away when Josh spoke.

"Basically Mum doesn't want us." He said quietly as Matt, Natalie and Jack turned to look at him. It was basically the situation in a nut shell but to say it like that made it different. It made it more real. Josh sat staring at the floor whilst Jack stormed into the bathroom, the only place he could get some privacy since no longer having a bedroom.

"Matt, can I have a word?" Harry said quietly. Matt had briefly forgotten that he was even there as he was too worried about Natalie and the twins about how they would react to the whole situation. Harry nodded to Matt's room to show that he wanted to talk to him in private so Matt reluctantly got up and followed Harry into his room where he shut the door quietly behind him.

"What did Aunt Cora really say?" Harry asked. He knew that Matt was keeping something back from the others and he wanted to know what it was.

"Mum doesn't want them back because they remind her of everything that has happened. Aunt Cora reckons that she blames them for Dad hitting her. Mum reckons that they stressed Dad out and that's why he hit her so she doesn't want them back. She blames them Harry, how can she do that?" Matt asked desperately. He didn't understand how their Mum could blame her own children for something that they were not responsible for.

"I don't know. I guess she's just been through a lot recently and is confused about everything. Give her a few days and she might realise what she has done." Harry said trying to stay optimistic but part of him had a feeling that Mum would stick to her word. She was good at doing that and Matt knew that more than anyone.

"She's also pretty annoyed that the kids are with me. Where else did she expect them to go?" Matt questioned and this time Harry didn't even answer. There was nowhere else for them to go.

"So what happens now?" Harry asked as he looked at Matt.

"I guess we just carry on as normal until we hear something else. If Mum doesn't want them then I'll have them. I'm not just going to abandon them somewhere and I've spent the majority of my life looking after them anyways because of our hopeless parents, why stop now!" Matt snapped. He had no problem with looking after them but the fact is that parents should care for their children but it always gets left down to him. He stopped and took a deep breath to calm himself down. He knew Natalie and the twins needed him. They've just been abandoned by their Mum and it was up to him once again to keep this family together.

_**Hello! So I apologise for the delay in updating this story. I had a bit of writer's block and didn't know where to take this and plus I've been rather busy! However, I hope to update a bit more regularly and I hope you enjoyed it. Please remember to review what you think and feel free to leave any suggestions!**_


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